When Should I Contact a Car Accident Attorney?

Posted on Thursday, July 5th, 2018 at 5:00 pm

If you’ve been involved in a car accident, the right time to call an attorney is immediately after the accident. The reason you want to call an attorney right away is, that attorney is going to be able to help you in dealing with both your insurance company and the other driver’s insurance company. That attorney is going to be able to come out to the scene of the accident, if appropriate, to take photographs, or send somebody out to take photographs. And that attorney is also going to be able to obtain a copy of the police report and make sure that the police have all the information they need to generate a proper police report that’s accurate and has all the information that you need.

People are surprised by that, when we say you should get an attorney right after a car accident. They say, “Well nothing’s going on and my insurance company’s taking care of me, and the other insurance company is paying for the damage to my vehicle. What do I need an attorney for?” The answer is: you need an attorney because the other insurance company isn’t going to offer you fair value for your case if you don’t have one. The other insurance company isn’t going to explain your rights to you if you don’t know what your rights are, and the other insurance company really has no interest in making sure that you have the best possible outcome for your case.

There’s no fee to meet with an attorney up front, there are no out-of-pocket expenses, so there really is no reason not to contact a car accident lawyer if you’ve been involved in a car accident and find out what you need to do, what your rights are. And as we tell our clients when they come in, “Look, this may be nothing.” You may go to the doctor once or twice, and then the case may resolve, or maybe we will pursue a case because it turns out that you haven’t really been injured seriously. But you’re better off from the get-go making sure you have competent attorneys representing you, so that if this injury does prove to be severe and you’re seeking recovery in the future, you’re protected